Rural Housing Needs Survey 2011

Draycott in the Moors Parish

1 Contents

Page

Introduction 3

Purpose of the Survey 3

Local resident views regarding affordable housing provision 3 - 5

Outline of Planning Context and Local Connection 5 - 6

Housing Need by Household Type 7

Timescale for Housing Requirements 7

Tenure Preferences 7

Accommodation Requirements 7

Current accommodation 8

Why current accommodation is unsuitable 8

‘Staffordshire Moorlands Homechoice’ Data 8 - 9 – registered housing need

Parish Leavers 9

Affordability – ability to purchase a property on the 9 - 11 open market

Existing housing stock and turnover 11 - 12

Recommendation on the numbers of affordable housing 13 to be provided in Draycott in the Moors Parish

2 Introduction

In September 2011, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council undertook a housing needs survey with the support of Draycott in the Moors Parish Council. Survey forms were posted out to every household in the Parish. Of the 468 forms posted out, 91 survey forms were returned, a statistically significant response rate of 19.4%. The aim was to give every household the opportunity to have their housing need assessed and to identify actual households who are in housing need in the local community.

House price inflation has pushed open market housing beyond the reach of many people. The expensive housing that is available can be bought by people from outside the Parish and the younger, less affluent people leave in order to find accommodation which they can afford. The numbers of homes which are actually needed in a rural community can be small, but their impact can really make a difference. A decision made by local people in a rural community about just a few affordable homes can be crucial to the future sustainability of that community, to its shop, pub, school and local businesses.1

Purpose of the survey

The survey was conducted in order to obtain evidence of the affordable housing need in the Parish of Draycott in the Moors. The aim of the survey was to establish the type and tenure of housing that may be required to meet local need, and the extent to which any housing need might be met by current housing stock. It also seeks to identify people who have a strong local connection to the parish and need to move into their own accommodation within the parish but cannot afford to do so without the provision of some affordable housing.

Local resident views regarding affordable housing provision

The survey gives local residents the opportunity to give their opinions about affordable housing. The survey gauges the level of community support for the provision of affordable homes to meet local need. There can be legitimate concerns about the development of affordable housing within the local area. Opposition can also be about the development of lower priced or rental properties and the type of person who is likely to live in these properties. Local people are often convinced that the properties will in reality not be for local people. Of the total 91 forms returned the majority, 56% of respondents, would be in favour of a small development of affordable homes for local people within the Parish, views expressed follow;

1 Living Working Countryside – The Taylor Review of Rural Economy and Affordable Housing. (2008)

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‘’Strongly disagree, would object strongly to any additional housing proposals as we feel it would affect the value of our house and effect the balance of the community as a whole.’’ ‘’Draycott in the Moors has no shops, no schools, no pubs, limited public transport. It is where most people come to live to get away from all that. What is the point of building on our well loved countryside when there are no facilities for people with young children? I am not a 'Daily Mail' reader but this is a daft idea. Some pensioner bungalows were built at the bottom of the hill, opposite the Draycott Arms pub since then the Post Office, shop, pub and bus stop have gone, leaving these people isolated if they have no transport. Tean, Blythe Bridge and Cheadle have a glut of cheap starter homes to rent and some to buy so I am confused about the purpose of the survey.’’ ‘’As there is no infrastructure in Draycott in the Moors I feel it is totally unsuitable for affordable housing i.e. no school, post office, very few buses and no doctor.’’ ‘’There are no amenities in the area, i.e. closed school, Post Office, no shops and very few bus services, so I don't feel we need more houses.’’ ‘’A car is necessary to live here now due to lack of school, pub and transport.’’ ‘’No suitable sites. The road is too busy for additional housing and there are no services in the area.’’ ‘’Unsure - With affordable housing local amenities should be available (i.e. scho ols) as Draycott has none of these then perhaps it is not the correct village to be developing?’’ ‘’We don't need anymore housing there is enough empty houses in the area and surrounding area and there is enough traffic on the roads. What’s the point having more housing we have no shops, no school or amenities.’’ ‘’Hopefully all land is Greenbelt.’’ ‘’Draycott would benefit from employment opportunities and more houses to sustain the life of Draycott. The power station development in Creswell would have benefitted Draycott.’’ ‘’If only for local people.’’ ‘’There are no council properties and very few private rented so we would struggle if we had to move.’’

The views of local residents regarding affordable housing can be categorised into 3 main groups as follows:

Category No. of forms In housing need and in favour of a 6 scheme Not in housing need and in favour of a 45 scheme Not in housing need and not in favour 40 of a scheme

4 Respondents also identified the following sites as potentially suitable for a small scale development of affordable housing for local people.

‘’Old Smithfeld Arms site, nr Blythe Bridge.’’ ‘’Land adjacent to Blythe Colours.’’ ‘’The playing fields of Draycott school which is now closed ad owned by a private company.’’ ‘’Bottom of Cresswell Old Lane, Railway Cottages.’’ ‘’Field adjacent to Draycott Church.’’ ‘’From the end of Draycott Old Road on the South side of old A50 going West (towards Blythe Bridge).’’ ‘’Corner of Rookery Crescent, Cresswell on garage site, they are an eyesore and need demolishing.’’ ‘’Draycott Moor College Field.’’ ‘’Near to Draycott church.’’

Outline of Planning Context and Local Connection

The Parish of Draycott in the Moors is within the Staffordshire Moorlands District Council Planning Authority area. The Local Plan, emerging Core Strategy and SPDs ‘Housing for local people and affordable housing’ and ‘Housing Delivery’ outline the current planning policy guidelines for affordable housing.

Core strategy policies H1, H2 and rural area policies SS6 –SS6c address the provision of new development. In towns and larger villages (not applicable in Draycott in the Moors Parish) residential developments of 5 dwellings (0.16 hectares) or more need to provide 50% affordable housing. In the rest of the rural areas, including the smaller villages (such as Draycott) all housing needs to be affordable. There is preference for social rented housing within the District, with negotiation to 30% low cost home ownership (discounted sale, shared ownership, shared equity, rent to buy etc). Rented properties developed under planning policy H2 and consequently advertised through ‘Staffordshire Moorlands Home choice’ choice based lettings are subject to the band ranking and local connection criteria laid out within the allocation policy. Band A is the highest priority and will be considered first, and so on through Band B, C and D. If an applicant is unable to demonstrate that they have a local connection the application will normally be placed in Band D. Band D= No need to move, or no local connection, or financially able to meet own housing needs. An applicant will be accepted as having a local connection if they fulfil one or more of the following criteria. If they have:

5  Lived continuously in the District for 6 out of the previous 12 months  Lived continuously in the District for 3 out of the previous 5 years  Have permanent employment in the District  Have close family members living in the District, who have resided in the District continuously for 5 years. The family members who would give a local connection are: Parents, siblings, adult children. In addition in rural areas, the Council can use saved policy H15 of the adopted Local Plan which states that in exceptional circumstances planning permission may be granted for affordable housing on the edge of villages in rural areas that would not normally be released for development provided the scheme would, provided it meets a proven local need. The key aim of this planning policy otherwise known as the rural ‘exceptions’ policy is to maintain balanced communities. Local needs housing is to be occupied by a person within the household who has a strong local connection to the Parish and meets at least one of the following criteria:

 Living continuously in the Parish for at least 5 years.  Having strong local connection with the Parish by birth or upbringing or by previous period of residence.  Needing to support there family currently living in the Parish or are themselves in need of family support.  Being employed in the Parish  Requiring a dwelling for a specific need, i.e. agricultural workers or rural workers dwelling, where a worker needs to live on site.

The local connection of those residents in housing need and in favour of a scheme can be summarised as follows:

Category % of Ranges in Average Respondents Years (min Duration and max) (years) Currently live in the Draycott in the 100 3 -30 16 Moors Parish Work in the Parish 0 0 0 Have relatives in the Parish 0 0 0 Have previously lived in the Parish 0 0 0

The following sections set out the key housing demand information from the survey for the 6 households identified in housing need.

6 Housing Need by Household Type

The household types of the 6 households in housing need are as follows: Single adult x 3 Couple with 2 children Single elderly Childless couple

Timescale for Housing Requirements

In response to the question “When is this housing going to be needed”, 3 households stated ‘’ now “, 2 households stated “1 to 3 years”, another 1 stated “3 – 5 years”.

Tenure Preferences

Respondents’ tenure preference was distributed between shared or subsidised affordable ownership and housing association rented.

4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1

Numberof households 0.5 0 Private Shared or Housing Private Rented Ow nership subsidised Association affordable Rent ow nership

Accommodation Requirements

The survey indicated a predominant preference for 2 bed houses, with a lesser need for 3 bed houses, 1 bed flats and a 2 bed bungalow. Although it should be noted that 3 of the households would, under normal circumstances, only be offered the following housing association rental property through the ‘Staffordshire Moorlands Homechoice’ scheme:

 A one bed property rather than a 2 bed house because they are single adults or a childless couple.

7 Current accommodation

The greatest need for affordable housing is from people currently living with their parents/ relatives (3 households), 2 households live in private rented accommodation and the other in tied accommodation.

Why is your current accommodation unsuitable?

3.5

3

2.5

2

1.5

1

Numberof households 0.5

0

Too

Too big Too

Too small Too

Health/

expensive

Concerns

of tenancy of

Need to live to Need

about ending about

mobility issue mobility independently

The survey identified that the key reason why respondents’ current housing is unsuitable is due to the “need to live independently” (3 households). These results link to the above chart “Where do you currently live?” which shows that the majority of respondents are living with parents or are in private rented accommodation.

‘Staffordshire Moorlands Homechoice’ Data – registered housing need

A further indicator of need can be determined from the number of people registered on a Housing Register. There are currently 182 households that have registered on Moorlands Homechoice with an interest in the Draycott in the Moors area, with 4 resident in the Parish and one of these households also responding to the housing needs survey. It can therefore be taken that there are a further 3 additional households in need of accommodation who did not respond to the survey. The figure of 3 Parish residents registered on Moorlands Homechoice should be considered as a minimal expression of actual need and is likely to be an under-representation because it does not include people with a local connection to the Parish who have moved away and may wish to return.

The 3 households registered on Moorlands Homechoice require a home with the following number of bedrooms;

8 Number of Household Bedrooms type Required 2 bed Single & 1 bungalow/ child level access adapted 2 bed house Couple & 1 child 1 bed flat Single

Parish Leavers

Those that responded to the survey highlighted 5 Parish Leavers, people that were resident in the Longnor area and left the Parish within the last 10 years because they could not afford to buy/ rent a home in the area. 3 of these Parish Leavers were former household members and would potentially return if cheaper housing were available.

Affordability – ability to purchase a property on the open market

The survey asked respondents for financial information, including the level of mortgage and rent that they could afford. The mortgage borrowing ability of respondents was very minimal, with 3 able to borrow below £50,000, and one between £50,000 -£60,000. The weekly income of respondents in housing need for 2 households was £201-300pw, for another below £100pw and another £301- 400pw.

Although respondents indicated a preference for owner occupation, none of the households may be able to meet their housing need by purchasing a property on the open market (comparing mortgage borrowing ability and savings to the entry level price for a terraced property in the Manifold Ward of £140,000 and the lower quartile house price is £121,000. The households do not have the household income or savings to meet their housing needs on the open market. The graph and tables below show average property price information over time.

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90th Upper Lower percentile Quartile Average Quartile Apr-08 290,000 215,000 184,647 135,000 Oct-08 300,000 250,000 204,801 140,000 Apr-09 320,000 235,000 188,356 113,500 Oct-09 300,000 245,000 204,541 124,000 Apr-10 315,000 200,000 188,103 128,500 Oct-10 245,000 192,000 164,779 118,000 Apr-11 320,000 195,000 178,008 119,000 Oct-11 325,000 210,000 187,420 130,000 Apr-12 310,000 211,000 186,417 120,000 Oct-12 245,000 185,000 158,365 120,000

The average property price information over time for a terraced property is shown below. This can be considered entry level housing in the absence of flats.

No. terraced Lower properties sold Average Quartile 2003 25 Apr-08 129,068 90,000 2004 19 Oct-08 170,414 145,000 2005 14 Apr-09 134,635 70,000 2006 21 Oct-09 150,494 87,000 2007 24 Apr-10 160,635 140,000 2008 10 Oct-10 118,692 95,000 2009 11 Apr-11 106,812 80,000 2010 13 Oct-11 127,719 120,000 2011 18 Apr-12 115,967 105,000 Oct-12 115,600 90,000

10 Affordability in the Checkley Ward based on household disposable incomes is 5:1, compared to a regional average of 5.7:1. (Earnings data related to a single person in household employment) The lower quartile house price to income ratio in Checkley Ward is 7:1. The information contained in the table shows a mortgage calculation at 3 times income and is explained in the below table.

% of households priced out of Checkley Ward market FTB households - Flats Not Available FTB households - Terraced houses 45.11% FTB households - Semi-detached houses 54.92% FTB households - Detached houses 76.45% Owner occupier - Flats Not Available Owner occupier - Terraced houses 34.33% Owner occupier - Semi-detached houses 45.11% Owner occupier - Detached houses 70.57%

Nearly half of first time buyers 45.11% are priced out of buying entry level terraced houses in the Checkley Ward on a loan based on 3 times incomes. This combined with the current lending market and higher deposit requirements means that even more households are likely to be priced out.

Existing housing stock and turnover

The most common house type within the Checkley Ward is detached, the most common tenure is owns with mortgage or loan and the housing density is 1 dwellings per hectare. The table overleaf shows the occupancy characteristics of the Checkley Ward with second residences/ holiday homes along the lines of the regional average.

Number % Compared to Region (%) Occupied household space 2,111 96.80% 0.20% Second residence/holiday accommodation 10 0.50% 0.20% Unoccupied household space 69 3.20% -0.20% Vacant household space 59 2.70% -0.40% Total 2,180 100.00% 0.00%

A profile of Checkley Ward property types illustrates that there is a low proportion of entry level accommodations such as flats and terraces available.

Compared to Region Number % (%) Detached 976 44.60% 20.70% Semi-detached 912 41.60% 4.00%

11 Terraced 254 11.60% -12.30% Flats - purpose built block 7 0.30% -11.00% Flats - conversion 17 0.80% -1.00% Flats - commercial building 14 0.60% -0.30% Mobile or temporary structure 11 0.50% 0.10% In a shared dwelling 0 0.00% -0.20% Total 2,191 100.00% 0.00%

Of the 2,191 total dwellings within the Checkley Ward the annual turnover by property type shows that the turnover of entry level properties is also very low.

Semi- Terraced detached Detached property property property Flat/Maisonette % of total sales sales sales property sales stock 2008 9 12 27 not available 2.2 2009 11 19 24 4 2.7 2010 13 27 16 4 2.8 2011 18 15 21 2 2.6 2012 5 17 17 not available 1.8

The Checkley Ward tenure profile below shows that owner occupation represents nearly 86% of all stock, 8% above the regional average. It also shows that affordable housing is below the regional average.

Compared to Region Number % (%) Owns outright 808 38.20% 8.00% Owns with a mortgage or loan 1,024 48.40% 9.80% Shared ownership 9 0.40% -0.20% Private rented - landlord or letting agency 86 4.10% -2.30% Private rented - employer 0 0.00% -0.20% Private rented - friend or relative 18 0.90% 0.40% Rented from Council (Local Authority) 61 2.90% -11.40% Other social rented 76 3.60% -2.80% Living rent free 31 1.50% -1.10% Other 3 0.10% -0.10% Total 2,116 100.00% 0.00%

12 Recommendation on the numbers of affordable housing to be provided in Draycott in the Moors Parish

It is not usual to provide specifically and exactly for the total identified need as some households may not be eligible for affordable housing and some respondents may withdraw, move away or be housed by other means. It is recommended that the amount of housing provided be based on 30% of the total need identified.

The provision of new homes according to need can be calculated as follows; 6 households surveyed + 3 Moorlands Homechoice + 3 potential returnees = 12

30% of 12 = 3. This would mean the provision of 3 new homes.

This survey has been undertaken with the support of Checkley Parish Council. These conclusions are based on information provided by residents of the Parish of Checkley as part of a paper-based survey and data from Moorlands Homechoice and Hometrack.

The views of the Parish Council and the community on the outcomes of this report are welcomed.

Contact information: Michelle Costello - Housing Strategy Officer, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, Moorlands House, Stockwell Street, Leek, ST13 6HQ. Direct Dial: 01538 395400 ext 4100. Email: [email protected]

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